Arts, Briefly; 'CSI' Buries 'Apprentice'

By KATE AURTHUR; Compiled by Lawrence Van Gelder

Published: May 21, 2005

On Thursday night, CBS was No.1 in all of the crucial Nielsen estimates and drew more than twice as many viewers as NBC, its closest competition. CBS's two-hour season finale of ''CSI,'' directed by Quentin Tarantino, above right, brought in an average audience of 30.05 million, and its viewership grew in every half-hour: from 9:30 to 10 p.m., 35.15 million were watching ''CSI.'' Notably, those people were not watching the finale of NBC's ''Apprentice,'' which brought in 13.7 million viewers. Among adults 18 to 49, the hiring of Kendra Todd drew 22 percent fewer viewers than the second season's finale, and 55 percent fewer than the conclusion of Season 1. The departure of Dr. Carter (Noah Wyle) on ''ER'' brought NBC its only victory on Thursday; it was No.1 for its hour among 18- to 49-year-olds. KATE AURTHUR